A I D S

AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome), otherwise known as HIV (Human Immune Deficiency Syndrome) is broken down to type 1 and type 2. Currently 95% of all cases are type 1. Although there is still no cure, the standard treatment has been massive doses of anti-viral drugs with limited success. A new triple anti-viral drug has been introduced called "Biktarvy" which seems to offer hope of a normal life for AID sufferers. Test results have shown viral load in the blood stream to be undetectable after treatment. The medication seems to be well tolerated with minimal side effect in the study group.

Thankfully they don't call it GRID anymore. Little did they know in 1982 that it affected more than just Gays. If I remember correctly, the first confirmed hetero death was an airline pilot who had some sort of transplant.

Gay-related immune deficiency (GRID) was the original name for a disease currently known as AIDS. GRID was first mentioned in a May 11, 1982 article in The New York Times.[1] In this article, the term "A.I.D." (Acquired Immunodeficiency Disease) is also mentioned. In the early days of AIDS (i.e., 1982–1985), the terms "gay cancer" and "gay plague" were also used.[2][3][4]

While sporadic cases of AIDS were documented prior to 1970, available data suggests that the current epidemic started in the mid- to late 1970s. By 1980, HIV may have already spread to five continents (North America, South America, Europe, Africa and Australia). In this period, between 100,000 and 300,000 people could have already been infected.1

Well I found "Patient Zero", but it looks like what I heard 35 years ago was almost totally wrong. It is interesting that the term "Patient Zero" started with this case.

Gaëtan Dugas (French: [ɡaetɑ̃ dyɡa]; February 20, 1953 – March 30, 1984), a Canadianflight attendant, was a relatively early HIV patient who once was widely regarded as "patient zero" or the primary case for AIDS in the United States; his case was later found to have been only one of many that began in the 1970s, according to a September 2016 study published in Nature.[1][2][3]

In March 1984, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study tracked the sexual liaisons and practices of gay and bisexual men, especially in California and New York. Dugas was code-named as "patient O" (pronounced "oh", and standing for "Out-of-California"); misconstruing of the letter "O" as 0 (zero) led to the origin of the term "patient zero."[4][5] The extent to which HIV/AIDS was known about in the early 1980s, how it was spread, or when Dugas was diagnosed are disputed.[6]